A few things–that I am thankful for in the public arena
I’m thankful that we have had a popular blue resurgence — only a few short yrs ago the pundits were talking about the end of the Democrats.
Thankful someone finally wrote a good article about the lousy commuter rail service. Today’s Metro and Globe
Thankful for our good New England government from Kennedy to Kerry to our reps to our town poll workers. Watch Georgia Governor Sonny Purdue praying for rain or watch Ohio Congresswoman Jean Schmidt calling Jack Murtha a traitor for comparison. We are fortunate here.
Thankful we have a thoughtful conservative like Peter P. to banter with here.
Thankful for Jimmy Carter–whether you agree or disagree with him he has a fearless sincerity and kindness.
Thankful we all made it this far and for all the people that have make it possible.
Riffing: on a few things that come to mind off the top of my head riffing.
jconway says
As much as I love Chicago Beantown will always trump the Windy City and Cambridge will always be my true home. Its funny that even the flaws of home become things you miss, like traffic problems on Storrow Drive, the closed Walden Street bridge, beat up East Cambridge tenement homes. I dont care their all part of the fun of home!
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p>Go Cambridge beat Everett!
raj says
…indeed about 4 decades, but IIRC, Chicago has some of the most astounding museums in the world. When I was a child growing up in Cincy, our science class made a sojourn to Chicago to visit the Museum of Science & Industry, the Hayden Planetarium, and the Museum of Natural History and the Aquarium. The journey was so extensive that we had to overnight at the WMCA.
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p>Don’t sell Chicago too short.
jconway says
I definitely love Chicago, being in Hyde Park Ive been to the MSI a few times (ours is still better IMO), the Aquariuam (we win still), the Field (they win), and the Art Institute (by far beats the MFA). But its just not home the same way Boston is.
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p>Oh and Fenway trumps Wrigley although Wrigley is a gem.
raj says
…I wouldn’t want to be a resident there (if I have to reside somewhere in the US it would either be in MA. Or in San Francisco: Conan the Barbarian won’t be governor of the state forever.
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p>If you like museums, you might want to spend a week or so in (need I say it?) Munich–but you might want to wait until the exchange rate improves. Aside from four major art museums within walking distance of each other, there are two museums of Greek and Roman statuary, the Deutches Museum which beats Boston’s Museum of Science hands down (and also Chicago’s MSI as I recall it; btw, the exhibits are captioned both in German AND English), several museums of ethnology and old castles and churches.
cadmium says
some reason a lot of my co-workers have lived and worked long stints in Chicago. All have positive memories. BTW if you know someone in medical school and up for a challenge Cook County Hosp is a great place to learn.
raj says
…it would be at Chicago. Fermilab.
stomv says
And he’s done some things to move us in that direction by executive order — biofuels, fuel efficiency, and the like. He’s also had MA join RGGI. He’s advocated for more wind power, although it’s not clear if his advocation will result in, well, more wind power. It’d also be nice if he’d do things like expand payout on positive generation for net metering, get more funding for mass transit along with getting better mass transit, tackling that backlog of parks repairs, and revising building and zoning codes toward conservation and smart growth.
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p>But, as they say, it’s a start, and I’m thankful for it.
raj says
…is “RGGI” the abbreviation for? TIA
david says
Link for info.
raj says
…two things occur to me.
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p>One, we (the planet) will be overwhelmed by the Chinese and Indians no matter what we (the region) does.
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p>Two, we (the region) will continue to be polluted by (primarily) coal-fired power plants sited to the west, and there is little that we can do about it without a federal mandate.
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p>In 1976-76, I lived in New Haven CT. The city sat in a bowl surrounded by hills. The hills caught the pollution from, as I was told, the ConEd power plants in the NYC area. The smog was every bit as bad as the smog in the Cincinnati area when I was growing up there in the 1960s. Cincinnati had a similar landscape (seven hills surrounding the city), with the smog there being caused by emissions from Procter & Gamble.
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p>Los Angeles is somewhat fortunate, in that it doesn’t need to concern itself with pollution coming from the west. It (or more specifically the state) can regulate itself–at least to some extent.
sabutai says
Unlike 27% of the world, I have access to safe drinking water;
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p>Unlike 121 million children in the world, I went to school regularly;
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p>Unlike about 16% of the world, I can read a book and sign my name;
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p>Unlike 1 billion children today — just children mind you — I live above the poverty level;
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p>Unlike at least a third of the world, I live on more than $3 per day;
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p>Unlike billions around the world, I live in a country whose citizens can at least approach liberty and justice for all.
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p>source
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p>I also give thanks for this open thread, where I can invite people to my attempt at a new blog.
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p>And thanks to the Editors. This is a great place.
amberpaw says
I visited your new blog, Sabutai, and as a part-Kazakh love the title. I probably have a “google account” – is that gmail, by the way – so you may find a comment [is a google account a gmail account, your tech types?]
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p>Deb
cadmium says
http://qontheshore.blogspot.co…
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p>This is an interesting article on Belgium—I have a friend ( a little long lost now) who had obvious stark mixed loyalties between the two Belgiums in his own mind.
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p>One of these days I want to start a blog myself–divided between issues/politics and artwork. Something always gets in the way—maybe next spring.
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p>ps Mongol history always scared me.
sabutai says
The history is fascinating in that we have no contemporary sources of Chinggis (Genghis) Khan, just the so-called Secret History of the Mongols, written after his death by a Persian. The Mongols weren’t into that whole “writing” thing all that much.
Cad — If you have something to say, it can’t hurt to start a blog now, and not publicize it for a while. See how much “material” you have…
kbusch says
Like the Mongol theme too.
david says
Keep in mind those who are less fortunate.
lasthorseman says
We had a wonderful family dinner. I got to play with my one year old grandson and the after dinner walk consisted of tacking up the horses for 60 degree ride.
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p>One day though does not replace future prospects. The plan for Mass exodus continues. The search for remote survivalist off the grid homestead potentials is in high gear as are increasing reports of others my age doing the very same thing. We are not going to be able to stay here financially and have less desire to do so spiritually.
peter-porcupine says
I am thankful that David and Charley invited me here (did they ASK Bob?). I’m thankful for the information and intelligence which beams here (hiya, Ryan! And Jim C! And Cos!). But mostly, I’m thankful for people who care as much about governance as I do!
ralbertson says
I’m thankful for the many good friends I’ve made in my years of true blue blogging, not a few of whom live in the land of the bean and the cod. (Here’s looking at you, Cad.)
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p>I’m thankful that my work in the field eventually led to my recently resettling in the aforementioned land of the bean and the cod on a permanent basis myself… more specifically, right at the crest of Winter Hill, in beautiful and talented Somerville. (Our motto: “We don’t care how they do it in Boston.”)
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p>I’m thankful that I work for a guy I not only respect but also genuinely like, alongside colleagues that I not only respect but also genuinely like… and that the guy at the top of our collective shared foodchain is somebody I not only respect but also genuinely like, too.
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p>I’m thankful that I live in a strange and wonderful commonwealth where, even though people approach participatory politics with the same zest and zeal and gusto that other places reserve for more sedate spectator sports such as, oh, roller derby… when the dust needs to settle and the chips are down, they still close ranks and stand up for what’s right against those who would do them wrong.
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p>I’m thankful for blogs like BMG and BelowBoston and Left in Lowell and Richardhowe.com and all the others that represent the wide panoply of people and opinions to be found here in Massadamnchusetts.
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p>I’m thankful for hole-in-the-wall sandwich shops like Mulligan’s on Causeway Street, and bizarre bazaars like Building 19 in Billerica, and duck boat parades, and bicycling along the Mystic and the Charles and the Merrimack, and The Sausage Guy, and the Orange Line, and the Sox-and-Pats-and-Bruins, and the guy who plays blues in Davis Square on sunny weekends, and playing bumpercars at traffic rotaries every 3.5 miles.
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p>(Okay, so I lied about the traffic rotaries. What the hell were those people thinking when they came up with that nutburger concept, anyway??)
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p>In other words… I’m just thankful to be here now, with people like all of you.
sabutai says
Unless I’m behind some moron tourist from Pennsylvania or something.
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p>I love an intersection where you can take a coupla looks at your options if you’re not sure where you should turn.
raj says
I love rotaries
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p>if you were driving around the Place de la Concord (sorry, I don’t to French) in the center of Paris.
gcc034 says
You should be really thankful that I wasnt near you when I read your post as I would have puked on you after reading some of your nonsensical spew.
cadmium says